The Investigation of Printing Plate Problems with Scanning Electron Microscopy & X-ray Analysis.

A wide variety of printing problems are encountered by printing ink technologists in the course of their work. In many cases, the printing plates or cylinders are involved directly or indirectly in these problems. In the past, investigation of printing surfaces both chemically and optically has been difficult or impossible. The availability of Scanning Electron Microscopes teamed with energy dispersive x-ray analyzers, offer an extremely powerful combination for this purpose. Relevant examples of the use of these techniques in investigations of problems with lithographic, gravure and letterpress printing plates are given. In many cases, they have allowed a basic understanding of the causes of the printing difficulties which could not have been otherwise achieved. The availability of Scanning Electron Microscopes teamed with energy dispersive x-ray analyzers, offer an extremely powerful combination for this purpose. Relevant examples of the use of these techniques in investigations of problems with lithographic, gravure and letterpress printing plates are given. In many cases, they have allowed a basic understanding of the causes of the printing difficulties which could not have been otherwise achieved.